Melanoma skin cancer can be fatal unless caught early, but most skin lesions are harmless. Dermoscopy with training can help with diagnosis. This blog is not a substitute for a medical opinion-if you are worried about a changing or funny looking mole or spot, get it checked by a doctor with suitable skills.

More dermoscopy of melanoma on YouTube

Another excellent dermoscopy tutorial from Dr Thomas B Hanif on YouTube. Please check out this excellent educational resource. This video looks at streaks and globules in a superficial spreading melanoma. As is so often the case, and Dr Hanif stresses this, the lesion is bad enough looking to the naked eye to justify excision, but dermoscopic features are instructional and this is a good place to study them. Then, when dermoscopic melanoma features are present (or, indeed, absent) in a less dramatic lesion, our decision making can be better informed. A really useful channel, I have subscribed.

While I am uploading my own images and commentary here to support the skin lesion recgnition course I am running with colleagues Drs Henderson and Pees, I also want to point learners to all other on line resources I discover that are any good. In a multitude of teachers there is safety.